Coke Studio Season 2

WHO IS EDDY KENZO?

Eddy Kenzo is the kind of musician that wears his persona on his sleeve and portrays the fun and beautiful side of ordinary living in Uganda. His love for music and dance are always intertwined in his videos. He was responsible for putting together one of East Africa’s most viewed videos, Sitya Loss, which also launched a group of young dancers known as Ghetto Kids. Infusing local sounds into the popular Afro-beat and Dancehall genres is what makes this young man stand out. Some of his popular hits include Stamina and Yanimba. On Coke Studio Africa 2017, Eddy has been paired with Ghana’s Bisa Kdei.

ATTAINGING INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

Following his BET Award win for Best New International Act in 2015, Kenzo went on to amass a slew of international awards including the African Artiste of the year at the Nigeria Awards 2015, Best Music Video at the Uganda Entertainment Awards 2015, Best Use of Social Media by an Artiste at the Hipipo Music Awards 2015, and Best Video of the Year at the African Entertainment Awards USA 2015, among others. Kenzo has performed in several countries around the world, including at the SXSW 2015 in Austin, Texas, the Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ivory Coast, the UK and Cameroon.

THE BIG BREAKTHROUGH

Eddy Kenzo first got his breakthrough in Uganda’s music scene in 2008 with his hit song Yanimba. He followed up this success with the release of Stamina. Eddy’s international acclaim came in 2014 with the release of Sitya Loss, a viral sensation that averaged 100,000 views a day and was widely shared by prominent celebrities like Ellen Degeneres, P Diddy, Akon, Ronaldinho, Tevin Campbell, and Sanaa Lathan among others.

BEHIND THE MUSIC

Eddy Kenzo is a native of the Central Ugandan town of Masaka. At the age of four, Eddy lost his mother and was forced to live as a street kid for more than 13 years. Music would later turn out to become the ultimate escape and turning point in his life.